"I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing...kissing a lot. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls."Audrey Hepburn

Monday, January 25, 2016

Pixie Grow Out- Six Months

As most of you know, last summer I decided to take the plunge and get myself a Pixie Haircut for the first time. It will probably be the last time since I am a gal who loves versatility. But I loved it and since my express purpose in getting it was to grow it out, I decided to chronicle the six months I had it, in pictures, for those of you who might like to try it but who feel that it's too big a step. It's really not, especially if, like me, you have fast-growing locks. For the heat of summer, it was absolutely perfect. And I loved all of the transitions along the way, that allowed for such a wide range of vintage looks.

So here was my hair on the day it was cut. A nice Audrey Hepburn length, that hugged my head nicely. My stylist, Robin Tucker, said my hair was pretty difficult to cut because I have some cowlicks and skull dents (yep, dents) that made it hard to get truly consistent overall. So make sure if you go for the pixie, that you have a renowned stylist. They will not typically be found at your local 'Great Clips' and they will likely cost a pretty penny. But believe me, you don't want so-so technicians giving you a drastic cut.

When I got home, I decided to give myself a little bit of wave with a flat iron. It was pretty hard to use anything but heated tools on my hair at this stage and I do hate that because my hair became much more damaged than I'm accustomed to over the course of the time it was this short.

Eventually I began to play around with styling it away from my face. A few weeks after the initial cut, the bang portion was long enough to sweep back into a single bobby pin and I enjoyed the sort of chic change.

By August, pin curls were more easily accomplished. I focused only on setting the top hair, using a flat iron or small curling iron to slightly curve the back. I showcased this style in a video, which was part one of my Pixie Grow Out series on Youtube.

Next, I featured a roller set, after a few more weeks had passed. The look is entirely different and ended up being a fun favorite as well. By this point, the hair over my ears was becoming something of a 'beginner bob'.

Around this time, I decided to go red again...possibly because the blonde hair at the length it was made me feel a bit like my mom. Not that I don't think she's beautiful; I just began to really miss my red hair. My first style with the red hair was pin curled waves.

I also began to play a little with a center part, as my bangs grew long enough to give this a go. I enjoyed it a lot, especially with a feminine hair flower. Keep in mind that as of this point, the only cutting that I'd allowed to my hair was a little trim to keep the nape hairs from becoming a bit too 'mullet-y'.

I decided to tackle the pin curl finger waves for a video at this point. The hair had grown quite a bit and I really prefer this look to a traditional water wave because straight hair tends to take to it better.

Headbands become a very handy accessory at this grow-out stage, as the bangs become too long to style without setting.

So that brings us to the bob. And I decided I missed my bangs so I went for that too. I really am enjoying the Louise Brooks thing going on here.

Anyway, that's a six month grow-out for you. It was surprisingly easy and a really fun challenge! I look forward to doing more videos for you as it continues to grow and please let me know if you have questions or concerns about taking the plunge yourself!!

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comments:

I think because my hair is so coarse and wiry I have an aversion to pixie cuts. Trust me, I had one years and years ago and growing it out was quite traumatic. YOU, however, are made for that pixie. It looked wonderful on you--and as it grew out, you were even more lucky because it still managed to look great. I LOVE the bob much better though. Even though my hair is long and wavy, I've always had a lemming for that perfect bob and you have it!!!

Wow, I love all of the different styles you were able to achieve on such short hair. I've wanted to play with something shorter than a middy for a long time but I was nervous that I'd be stuck with the same hair style every day. Short hair looks so cute on you!

Hello Ashley,I am a big fan of yours, been following your videos since you started and have learned a lot. Recently been trying to find that video where you show an everyday set with perm rods, but I am not able to find it. Could you post the link to that video please. Keep up the good work, you are such an inspiration.x